Flying Cryptid Sighting – Kanawha Falls, WV
Posted by: Craig Woolheater on March 25th, 2015
The following is shared from Phantoms and Monsters with permission:
I received the following report from a man in Greensboro, NC earlier this week:
In September 2014 I was visiting friends in Fayette County, West Virginia. I once lived there when I was boy and this was the first time I had been back since I left for college in 2005.
My favorite pastime back then was to fish the Kanawha River, especially near the falls and up river in the deep water.
On my way home, I stopped off the point downriver from the falls and walked around. It was overcast and starting to turn to dusk. As I looked upriver towards the falls I saw something flying over the river near the opposite bank. It was flying south along the bank over houses and the railroad tracks, then it banked and turned towards my direction. The closer it got to me I started to realize how large it was.
The body was black and was shaped like a cylinder tapered to a pair of short legs. The feet were tucked up so I was unable to describe those. It didn’t have much of a tail that I could see. The wings were wide and broad, but I never saw it flap. It was floating and barely moving the wings. It was the strangest thing I’ve ever seen. As I thought about it later the wing span was at least 20 feet. The texture was similar to leather though the low light made it difficult to see. I couldn’t see a defined head or other features as it flew above me and beyond the trees.
I wasn’t scared but amazed. I can’t even give you an idea of what this was. I never heard any sound.
I didn’t see it again. A week later I called my aunt who lives upstream from the falls and mentioned it to her. She said that she had never heard anything about large birds. I’m not sure this was an actual bird because it didn’t fly like one. It seemed to propel by other means.
Can you provide any information? I appreciate you taking the time to read this. Cameron
NOTE: I was able to talk to Cameron on Wednesday. He couldn’t recall any further information, but I’m convinced that the size of the unknown flying being was quite extraordinary. If the wings had a 20 ft. span I’d speculate the body was at least 5 ft long according to the description. I’m not going to jump to any conclusions since there were some unique characteristics to this cryptid as opposed to other flying beings by comparison. Lon
Co-founder of Cryptomundo in 2005.
I have appeared in or contributed to the following TV programs, documentaries and films:
OLN's Mysterious Encounters: "Caddo Critter", Southern Fried Bigfoot, Travel Channel's Weird Travels: "Bigfoot", History Channel's MonsterQuest: "Swamp Stalker", The Wild Man of the Navidad, Destination America's Monsters and Mysteries in America: Texas Terror - Lake Worth Monster, Animal Planet's Finding Bigfoot: Return to Boggy Creek and Beast of the Bayou.
Thanks for posting this report, Craig.
Quite detailed witness account but without the usual exaggerations. Comes across as a sincere description of something the witness couldn’t make sense of at the time.
These are the kind of encounters that got me interested in the field.
Thanks for sharing!
More of this, less TV Guide, please.
Yeah, this made my day yesterday! After Papa, Mama and Baby Bigfoot, Thunderbirds/Relict Pteros are my second favorite cryptic.
Thanks again, Craig.
It almost sounds like one of those remote controlled planes shaped like a human. They are produced in different shapes like Superman to normal looking humans.
The fact of the matter is, the eye witness said he did not see the wings flap. That indicates stationary wings and potentially a motor as a separate means of propulsion. The description of the legs being short or tucked up, also fits into the remote controlled plane/human scenario. And these remote controlled vehicles run pretty quietly. The witness stated it was on the other side of the river. I have a feeling since they are quiet running to begin with, that the trees present were full of foliage and would absorb some sound, making the remote vehicle silent to the observer. Also, since the sighting was on the other side of the river, depending how fast the river was running, they do make noise which interferes or over rides other sounds, namely any sound coming from the silent running remote controlled vehicle.
When I first saw one of these remote controlled flying humans on YouTube, I was amazed. It was captivating. I can only imagine how this witness felt when he saw one in person.
All indications from the eye witness testimony tells me he saw a remote controlled flying human/plane.
A little over 10 years ago, I saw a very convincing flying saucer at dusk. It turned out to be a powered paraglider with a lighted canopy, but the low light meant I couldn’t see the pilot suspended underneath, and it was so slow and quiet it seemed to be hovering motionless. so the conditions can have a big impact on perceptions.
The description immediately brings to mind an unpowered hang glider, but I don’t know if it would be possible to get one in the air at that location, and WV tends to be too heavily forrested for me to think that’s safe, anyhow. It really could have been some design of ultralight, though. Another possibility is a pterosaur-shaped kite, of which there are many, with a misperception of the size. Although this does sound like an honest description, it does not seem to demand an exotic answer.